1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a probe cover dispenser, particularly to a dispenser, which can automatically deliver a probe cover to sleeve a probe.
2. Description of the Related Art
When bacteria or viruses invade the body, the immunological reaction most frequently seen is a fever, whereby the body can repair the damage caused by infection. In such a case, the body temperature needs frequently monitoring to learn the status of the body timely. The body temperature is usually measured in some specified regions, such as the mouth, the armpit, the ear and the anus. The ear temperature and the anal temperature are closer to the central temperature of the body. Further, the ear temperature and the anal temperature are easier to detect than the armpit temperature and the oral temperature. Besides, the ear temperature and the anal temperature have more stable measurement results than the armpit temperature and the oral temperature. Therefore, the infrared ear thermometer is a temperature measurement instrument most frequently used nowadays. However, the probe of an infrared ear thermometer is likely to accumulate earwax, which may result in mutual infection among users. Thus, the probe cover needs replacing after each time of use.
Conventionally, the user takes a probe cover to sleeve the probe with his hands. Such an operation is very likely to pollute the probe cover and cause an infection. Therefore, there are some technologies developed to prevent a probe cover from being polluted by hands. A U.S. Pat. No. 4,993,424 disclosed an infrared clinical thermometer having a probe cover storage device and a probe cover delivery device. When the probe is withdrawn into the head of the thermometer, the probe cover can automatically sleeve the probe without using hands. However, the prior-art infrared thermometer is complicated, bulky and expensive, and the ordinary consumers are hard to afford it.
Refer to FIG. 10 for a probe cover dispenser disclosed in a U.S. Pat. No. 5,100,018. The prior-art probe cover dispenser 56 has a body 58. A probe cover storage chamber 60 and a block plate 62 are arranged in the lower portion of the body 58. The probe cover storage chamber 60 stores probe covers stacked one above one, and the block plate 62 controls the delivery of the probe covers. A press plate 64 and a spring 66 are arranged above the probe cover storage chamber 60. The spring 66 adjusts the position of the press plate 64. A slide plate 68 is arranged below the probe cover storage chamber 60. The slide plate 68 has an indentation 70 able to receive a single probe cover. When the slide plate 68 is pushed toward the body 58, the block plate 62 is pushed outward, and the indentation 70 slides to reach a position exactly below the probe cover storage chamber 60 and receive a single probe cover. Then, the slide plate 68 together with the released probe cover is pulled out, and the probe is inserted into the probe cover inside the indentation 70. Thus, the probe is sleeved by the probe cover. However, the conventional probe cover dispenser is complicated, expensive, and hard to popularize. When the probe covers in the probe cover storage chamber 60 decrease, the pressing force that the spring 66 applies on the press plate 64 also decreases. Thus, the force pressing down the probe covers becomes smaller, which may cause the error of delivering the probe cover.
To overcome the abovementioned problems, the present invention proposes a probe cover dispenser, which uses a simple structure to automatically deliver a probe cover.